


if the lakes took the place of the seas

by shutupimshakira (Sniperdoodle)



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Black Eagles as Family, F/F, Female My Unit | Byleth, Gen, Hijinks & Shenanigans, M/M, Nonbinary Ingrid Brandl Galatea, Summer Vacation, The Great Fódlan Bakeoff (Fire Emblem), id rather be on the lake if u know what im saying, self-indulgent michigan au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-13
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:42:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,856
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26444362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sniperdoodle/pseuds/shutupimshakira
Summary: In the seven months Ingrid has been dating Dorothea, they’ve heard many stories of the Black Eagles. The BE’s are her family since she has none in blood, but Ingrid’s only met a handful of them. Now that they’re all in one place, it seems as good a time as any to meet them.(For the Great Fodlan Bakeoff 2)
Relationships: Caspar von Bergliez/Linhardt von Hevring, Dorothea Arnault/Ingrid Brandl Galatea, Edelgard von Hresvelg/My Unit | Byleth, Ferdinand von Aegir/Hubert von Vestra
Comments: 1
Kudos: 61





	if the lakes took the place of the seas

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is my entry for the Great Fodlan Bake-Off! This was my first time participating in an event in this fandom, and I had a lot of fun writing this! I know that it's fall and school has started, but I guess I'm still on lake time. 
> 
> Anyways, this is based off of my own experiences on family vacations, specifically vacationing on the Great Lakes. I was very tempted to write more, but I didn't want to go over-board and not finish in time. So, I hope you enjoy!
> 
> Title: Say Yes! to M!ch!gan!, Sufjan Stevens

The Black Eagles were once a close-knit group of college friends, but once they graduated life pulled them in different directions. They all stay in touch, but rarely all nine of them get together . . . which is why they came up with the idea of an “annual family reunion”. That’s how Dorothea explains it to Ingrid as they make the long drive up to the Lake Michigan rental. 

In the seven months Ingrid has been dating Dorothea, they’ve heard many stories of the Black Eagles. The BE’s are her family since she has none in blood, but Ingrid’s only met a handful of them. Now that they’re all in one place, it seems as good a time as any to meet them. 

After a long drive filled with showtunes, Ingrid and Dorothea end up at their destination. The three-story vacation home is built into the hill that leads down to the beach. They squeeze into the last parking spot as they’re the last to arrive. Once parked, Ingrid steps out to take in the view. 

“Wow,” they sigh as they look at the glimmering lake hidden behind the trees. The water is endless, bleeding into the horizon. They don’t think they’ll ever get sick of this view. 

If they were at Dimitri’s lake house, the first thing they’d do is run down to the shore. However, Dorothea seems to have a different idea, “First thing’s first, I’m going to use the restroom.”

Ingrid sighs, “If you had to go, we could have pulled over.”

“But we were so close I didn’t want to stop,” Dorothea insists as she heads to the house, so Ingrid follows. 

The front door swings open and Edelgard greets the two. She’s one of the Black Eagles Ingrid has met, as they’ve gone on multiple dates with her and her fiancé, Byleth, “Welcome. It’s about time you two showed up.”

“We stopped in Frankenmuth,” Dorothea explains. She playfully pushes her arm, “Now show me where the closest restroom is.” 

Edelgard points to a room across a small sitting area and Dorothea bolts for it. She turns to Ingrid, “So, how was Frankenmuth? Were you two shopping?”

“No, uh, I wanted lunch from the Bavarian Inn,” Ingrid admits. “We thought about shopping, but Bronner’s looked crowded.” 

“Hhm, Byleth was to stop there on the way back. Something about fishing ornamented for her father,” Edelgard says. “But it’s the middle of summer. It’s too early to be thinking about Christmas.”

“Agreed.”

Dorothea rejoins them, “Alright, now that’s taken care of, where is everyone?”

“Down at the breach,” Edelgard answers. “I came up here to let you two in . . . and I’ve been convinced to change into a swimsuit.”

“Really?” Dorothea quirks an eyebrow. “Are you going to swim?”

“No.”

“That’s expected.”

“Anyways,” Edelgard sighs. “You two are rooming on this floor with Byleth and myself. Once you get settled in, you should join everyone on the beach.” 

“Of course,” Ingrid agrees. 

Ingrid and Dorothea quickly get their luggage into their room and change into their swimsuits. They rush down, but before Ingrid can jump into the surf, Dorothea introduces them to everyone. 

First, there’s Hubert and Ferdinand. Hubert is content to read in the shade, but Ferdinand is trying to goad his husband into joining him in the water. There’s Caspar, who’s in the lake and pulling his boyfriend Linhardt around in an inner tube. Bernadetta, Petra and Byleth have made a sandcastle and are putting on the finishing touches. 

The Black Eagles seem like a nice bunch, but Ingrid feels like an outsider, or a tenth wheel. Dorothea is catching up with her friends, and they don’t want to ruin her fun. 

Edelgard finally comes down to the beach (Dorothea and Ingrid somehow beat her) in her swimsuit. As soon as she joins them, Caspar runs out of the water, roughly dragging and tumbling Linhardt onto the shore. He shouts, “Sweet! We have ten people!”

“Yes, we do,” Hubert says. “Congratulations, you can count.”

“Why does that matter?” Ferdinand questions. 

“It’s an even number,” Caspar stresses. “Which means we can play chicken!” He receives blank stares from the Black Eagles and groans, “C’mon! Have you never heard of chicken!?”

“I am knowing of chicken. It is poultry,” Petra points out. “But how can you be playing chicken?”

“No, it’s the animal. It’s a game,” Caspar continues. “You pair up, go into the water, and one person gets on the other’s shoulders. Then, you try and push the other people off!”

“That sounds stupid,” Hubert says. 

“That sounds dangerous,” Edelgard adds. 

Byleth shrugs, “I’m in.”

“Great!” Caspar grins. “Who else?”

Ingrid remembers playing this with their friends when they were young. They would always team up with Glenn and win. Now, maybe it’ll help them get closer to the Black Eagles . . . and it’s always fun to knock people into the water, “Sure, I’ll play.”

“I will too,” Petra agrees.

“Sweet!” Caspar says. “But c’mon, we need more people. Ferdinand, I know you want to.”

“I’ll admit that I am . . . morbidly curious,” Ferdinand sighs. “So, I shall play! And Hubert will be my partner!” 

Hubert doesn’t bother to glance up from his book, “Don’t rope me into this.”

Caspar turns to Dorothea next but he doesn’t have to speak. She pinches the bridge of her nose as she gives in, “Fine but-” she loops her arm around Ingrid’s, “-I’m playing with Ingrid.”

“Cool,” Caspar moves onto his next target. “Bernie-”

“Uh, I think I’ll sit this out,” Bernadetta says. 

“Me too,” Linhardt joins the group, sand in his hair from his tumble onto shore. He drops his inner tube in the middle of the group and flops down into it, “Someone will need to administer first aid, as always.”

(Ingrid really should question that ‘as always’ part, but everyone else has moved on.)

“That leaves you Edelgard,” Caspar says. 

“Me?!” Edelgard shrieks. “I’m not getting in the water!”

“C’mon!” Caspar whines. “It’ll be fun!”

Edelgard folds her arms, “No.”

“Byleth help.”

“Byleth no.”

“You won’t be getting in the water,” Byleth says. “You’ll be getting on my shoulders.”

“But what if I fall in?!”

“I won’t let you fall. Trust me. We’ll win.”

“And, if you don’t join us, we’ll have an odd number of people!” Caspar adds. 

“I can sit out,” Hubert offers.

“No, no take-backs,” Caspar insists. His frown turns into a devious grin as he leans in and teases, “Why Edelgard, are you a chicken?”

Edelgard glares at him, “Caspar.”

“Yeah?”

“I’m going to kick your fucking ass.”

Caspar laughs (as he apparently does not have a healthy sense of danger) and runs for the water, “Sweet! Let’s go!” 

The teams are clear. Dorothea is on Ingrid’s shoulders, Hubert is with Ferdinand, Edelgard gets Byleth to let her on her shoulders on the shore, which leaves Caspar to climb onto Petra’s back. 

Once they’re all in the water and mounted, Caspar announces, “Alright. Once you’re knocked into the water, you’re out. And, uh,” he glances towards the shore where Linhardt and Bernadetta are watching. “Let’s not be _too_ violent. I don’t wanna piss Lin off, especially since we don’t need to break last year’s record number of injuries.”

“Agreed,” Edelgard says. 

‘Wait, what?” Ingrid asks, but gets ignored.

Hubert crosses his arms. Ferdinand has to keep them steady as he grumbles, “This already is an inherently violent game.”

“Whatever,” Caspar rolls his eyes. “Let’s just play. Three, two, one, go!”

Ingrid grips onto Dorothea’s legs and starts moving. Caspar directs Petra towards Edelgard and Byleth, since he has a death wish. The easier target is Hubert and Ferdinand-the grim man is so tall the two will topple over easily. 

Pushing through the waves, they approach their target. Ferdinand laughs, “You are making a mistake! We shall not be taken down so-” Dorothea bops Hubert in the chest and he falls backwards into the water, taking Ferdinand with him. He pops out of the water sputtering, “Ah. Well. Good game!”

“Yes!” Dorothea shouts. She points and directs Ingrid to Caspar and Petra. The two are still chasing Edelgard and Byleth, “Let’s get Caspar next!” 

Ingrid nods and moves forward . . . only to trip on a rock. 

“Shit-” is the only thing they get out before they meet lake water. They surface at the same time as Dorothea and laugh because she looks like a wet dog with her damp hair dangling over her face. They manage to get out, “Uh, sorry,”

Dorothea blinks, “What happened?”

“I, uh, tripped?” Ingrid admits. 

She laughs and kisses them through her hair, “Hey, at least we got Ferdie.”

A splash from behind distracts them. Caspar and Petra are both in the water, leaving Edelgard and Byleth victorious. The former shouts, “GET FUCKED CASPAR!”

Caspar spits out lake water, “Alright, you win. Up for round two?”

“No, I’ve proved myself,” Edelgard says. “I’ll take my win and leave.” 

“I’ve got to start making dinner anyways,” Byleth admits. 

“Right,” Edelgard hugs Byleth’s head as she begins to move. “Please take me back to land.”

“El, I can’t see.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“Okay, they’re out,” Caspar turns to everyone else. “But who is up for round two!?” He jumps onto Petra’s back, who isn’t expecting it. They fall back into the water with a splash. 

They continue to play, and all six of them stay in the water until Byleth finishes dinner. The Black Eagles and Ingrid eat out on the patio, enjoying the cooling breeze of the lake and each other’s company. 

The day ends with a fire on the beach watching the sunset. As it descends, the sky turns into brilliant pinks and purples. The sun dips below the horizon into the lake, and everyone is content. 

“Wait so,” Ingrid says. “What was that about a ‘record number of injuries last year’? Should I be worried?”

“My Ingrid, you know that it isn’t a good vacation until someone gets injured,” Dorothea says. 

They blink. And then realize how many times they and their friends have gotten hurt on vacation, “Okay. That’s fair. So, what happened last year?”

“We went to Disney World,” Ferdinand answers. 

“How did you get hurt at Disney World?” Ingrid questions. “The happiest place on Earth?”

“You’d be surprised,” Dorothea admits. 

“Like how Caspar got a heat stroke in the Animal Kingdom,” Linhardt says. “He forgot to eat.”

“Hey, uh, where is Caspar?” Bernadetta points out. 

Everyone stares at each other. 

“Hey guys!” Caspar runs up, wearing four inner tubes, his head barely peeking over the top. “I’m invincible!” he throws himself on the ground and rolls down the small, sandy hill. When he comes to a stop, he doesn’t get up. 

“You okay?” Linhardt calls out. 

“YEAH!” Caspar shouts. “EXCEPT I THINK I GOT SAND IN MY EYE!”

Linhardt sighs as he stands up to tend to his boyfriend, “Injury number two.”

“When did injury number one happen?” Dorothea asks. 

“Oh. I tripped and fell in the sand earlier,” Byleth says. “Scraped my knee. Thankfully, I survived.” 

The conversation continues well after dark, laughing and sharing stories. Ingrid has a feeling that this will be a good week. 

**Author's Note:**

> Caspar's shenanigans with the inner tubes is based off of something my cousin did, but my cousin kept on yelling "AUTOBOTS ROLL OUT" for whatever reason. Like I said, a lot of other shenanigans usually happen on my family vacations but I tried to keep it simple. 
> 
> If you liked this story consider leaving a comment, or follow me on Twitter @Sniperdoodle12 to hear me yell about FE:3H and the Muppets.


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